The Art Approach is expressed as a set of requirements:
Requirement 1: An art approach to HCI is a way of addressing the problem of designing art human-computer interactions. The artist uses human-computer interactions to produce a creative, technical and imaginative expression of the relationship between people and the world, to be experienced interactively by the user. That expression is intended to correspond to some ideal or criterion, such as beauty, aesthetic form etc. Art includes both visual and literary arts, fine and craft arts, as well as combinations thereof.
For example, different art approaches have produced artistic forms of human-computer interactions, such as: interactive robots; multi-media websites; digital paintings; contingent novels and plays; video games etc. More artistic forms continue to be developed – digital theatricals, interactive art artefacts etc.
Requirement 2: An art approach to HCI involves researching and creating artistic artefacts, as concern the design of human-computer interactions to be experienced interactively by others. For example, interactive robots, affording emotional and social stimulation and experience constitute such artefacts. Most artefacts are created by individuals, on the basis of their experience; but are now also produced by groups. At this time, there is little agreement as to the criteria, for example, beauty, aesthetic stimulation etc by which such artefacts are to be judged as art.
Requirement 3:The research and creation of an art approach to HCI constitutes a way forward in addressing the problem of designing art human-computer interactions. Experience, expert advice and the artefacts of others support such design as trial-and-error.
For example, currently, the aesthetics of the emotional and social interactions of humans and robots are at best rudimentary, but little understood and only modestly expressed. However, the artistic potential of such artefacts has been demonstrated and continues to be developed.
Requirement 4: An art approach to HCI has ways of establishing, whether the problem of designing art human-computer interactions has been addressed or not. For example, interactive robots and digital paintings, not to mention multi-media videos, have been exhibited in museums and galleries. The success of experience, expert advice and the artefacts of others in supporting the creation and the appreciation of art is attested by manifestos, artistic biographies and reflections, art criticism etc. The latter also indicate whether the problem of creating art human-computer interactions has been addressed or not.
Examples of Art Approaches to HCI
Salisbury, J. (Initial Draft): Videogame Engagement as a Process of Seeking Cultural Value
This paper suggests that players engage with (video) games, if they can find a sense of net personal cultural value, as they select, play and reflect on their play experiences. If video-games are considered an Art form, then Art experience more generally can be thought of as engagement seeking cultural value. As such, application of the Art Approach, proposed here, would seem appropriate.
How well does the Salisbury paper meet the requirements for constituting an Art Approach to HCI? (Read More…..)
Read More.....The paper’s art approach, as video-games, to HCI assumes the seeking of cultural value to be a problem of understanding (Comment 2). He considers that such understanding may have some utility for the field of game design (Comment 8), although this notion is not addressed explicitly by the research (Comment 2).
The game designer is assumed to produce a creative, technical and imaginative expression of the cultural relationship between game players and the world (Comment 1). No ideal or other criteria are offered for such an expression. Video games include text, images (both static and animated) and combinations of both.
Requirement 2: An art approach to HCI involves researching and creating artistic artefacts, as concern the design of human-computer interactions to be experienced interactively by others.
The research uses Classic Grounded Theory to analyse, depict and understand video-game interactions. The matter of their design is not addressed explicitly in the paper (Comments 2, 3, 5 and 8).
Requirement 3: The research and creation of an Art Approach to HCI constitutes a way forward in addressing the problem of designing art human-computer interactions. Experience, expert advice and the artefacts of others support such design as trial-and-error.
The research suggests that its theory of understanding video-game engagement as a process of seeking cultural value might be of utility to the field of game design (Comment 8); but proposes no suggestion of how this might be done (Comments 5 and 8).
Requirement 4: Finally, an Art Approach to HCI has ways of establishing, whether the problem of designing art human-computer interactions has been addressed or not.
The paper does not attempt to assess explicitly how well the problem of understanding has been addressed by the research. The problem of designing human-computer interactions has not been explicitly addressed.
Conclusion: Salisbury’s research can be considered as an art approach to HCI, providing video-games are considered to be art (maybe even a form of performance art). Either-way, engagement with art can be interestingly characterised in terms of a ‘process seeking cultural value’, as in the title of the paper. However, as an art approach, it is at the earliest stage of development, being currently limited to an initial attempt to understand video-games; but not to their design.